Run-time determination of application delivery

ABSTRACT

A software application is delivered to a client device. A plurality of alternate component versions for a first software component of a software application are stored. A plurality of alternate component versions for a second software component of the software application are stored. One of the plurality of alternate component versions for the first software component is selected. One of the plurality of alternate component versions for the second software component is selected. The selected alternate component version for the first software component is delivered to a client device. The selected alternate component version for the first software component is executed by the client device and the selected alternate component version for the second software component is executed by an application server.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a continuation application of pending U.S. application Ser. No.10/387,571, filed Mar. 14, 2003, the content of which is expresslyincorporated by reference herein it its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of software applicationdelivery. More particularly, the present invention relates todynamically partitioning a software application and deliveringapplication components to a requesting client device.

2. Background Information

A need exists to ensure that software applications are dynamicallypartitioned and delivered to a client device according to the profileconstraints of the client device. Presently, many web-based softwareapplications are readily available by request over the internet.However, web-based software applications are presently written withstatic partitioning and delivery rules. For example, an applicationauthor may write an application so that a presentation layer of aweb-based software application is delivered to the client device whileinteraction, business objects and data layers are retained at anapplication server. However, the application is partitioned withoutregard to the particular constraints of the requesting client devicebecause the partitioning of the presentation layer from the interaction,business objects and data layers is predetermined by the applicationauthor. For example, even if the interaction layer of a client devicecould be supported by the requesting client device, there is nomechanism for dynamically partitioning the interaction layer anddelivering the interaction layer to the client device.

As a result of the previous inability to dynamically partition anddeliver an application, an application author is motivated to provide aprimitive application to ensure the application can be delivered to thegreatest number of client devices. For example, a primitive applicationmay be authored with a primitive application user interface so as to beavailable to a wide variety of devices. Additionally, an applicationauthor may provide an application that requires continuous networkconnectivity so as to make the application available to the greatestnumber of client devices by supporting the layers of the application,e.g., the interaction layer, the business objects layer and/or the datalayer, at an application server.

However, many existing client devices are capable of supporting complexapplication layer components. For example, many traditional personalcomputers (PCs) can support a rich user interface for a softwareprogram. Additionally, many existing client devices are capable ofsupporting the interaction, business objects and/or data layers of anapplication without needing continuous network connectivity.

Accordingly, a need exists to dynamically determine the appropriatepartitioning of a software application according to a profile of therequesting client device. A need exists for an ability to selectcomponents for delivery to a client device according to the partitioningdetermination. Additionally, a need exists to deliver the selectedapplication components to a requesting client device.

To solve the above-described problems, an application delivery systemand method is provided to deliver dynamically partitioned softwareapplication components to a requesting client device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Not Applicable

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is further described in the detailed descriptionthat follows, by reference to the noted drawings by way of non-limitingexamples of embodiments of the present invention, in which likereference numerals represent similar parts throughout several views ofthe drawing, and in which:

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary network architecture of the applicationdelivery system, according to an aspect of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram showing a method of creating, partitioning anddelivering an application, according to an aspect of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram showing a method of delivering components of anapplication, according to an aspect of the present invention; and

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram showing a method of generating applicationcomponents, according to an aspect of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing, the present invention, through one or more ofits various aspects, embodiments and/or specific features orsub-components, is thus intended to bring out one or more of theadvantages as specifically noted below.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a method for deliveringa software application to a requesting client device is provided. Themethod includes receiving a request from the client device to launch thesoftware application. The software application includes multiplesoftware components. A profile of the client device is determined. Themultiple software components are dynamically partitioned based on thedetermined profile into a first group and a second group. The firstgroup is delivered to the client device based on the determined profile.According to another aspect of the present invention, the methodincludes retaining the second group based on the determined profile.According to still another aspect of the present invention, the methodincludes executing the application using the delivered and retainedsoftware components.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the deliveredgroup includes a presentation layer software component. According toanother aspect of the present invention, the delivered group includes aninteraction layer software component, a business objects layer softwarecomponent and/or a data layer software component. According to stillanother aspect of the present invention, the partitioning includesselecting a component version from multiple component versions based onthe determined profile. According to yet another aspect of the presentinvention, the determining includes determining a physical displaycharacteristic of the client device, at least one language supported onthe requesting client device, a processing potential of the clientdevice, a processor configuration of the client device, available clientdevice memory, and/or a client device network connection speed.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the methodincludes determining a user selection of a delivery preference andpartitioning the multiple software components according to thedetermined user selection. According to still another aspect of thepresent invention, the method includes forwarding an application managerto the client device to determine the profile of the client device.According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the methodincludes requesting the client device to forward the profile.

According to an aspect of the present invention, a system for deliveringa software application to a requesting client device is provided. Thesystem includes an application server that receives a request from theclient device to launch the software application. The softwareapplication includes multiple software components. The applicationserver determines a profile of the client device and partitions themultiple software components based on the determined profile into afirst group and a second group. The application server delivers thefirst group to the client device based on the determined profile.According to another aspect of the present invention, the applicationserver retains the second group according to the determined profile.According to still another aspect of the present invention, theapplication is executed using the delivered and retained softwarecomponents.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the deliveredgroup includes a presentation layer software component. According toanother aspect of the present invention, the delivered group includes aninteraction layer software component, a business objects layer softwarecomponent and/or a data layer software component. According to stillanother aspect of the present invention, the application server selectsa component version from multiple component versions based on thedetermined profile.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, theapplication server determines a physical display characteristic of theclient device, a language supported on the requesting client device, aprocessing potential of the client device, a processor configuration ofthe client device, available client device memory, and/or a clientdevice network connection speed. According to another aspect of thepresent invention, the application server determines a user selection ofa delivery preference and partitions the multiple software componentsaccording to the determined user selection. According to still anotheraspect of the present invention, the application server forwards anapplication manager to the client device to determine the profile of theclient device. According to yet another aspect of the present invention,the application server requests the client device to forward theprofile.

A software application is authored for partial delivery as a web serviceover a communications network to a client device. The softwareapplication includes multiple layers written in a conventionalprogramming language using traditional programming language constructs.For example, the application may be written as an object-orientedprogram using Java, Visual Basic and/or C++.

An application typically includes layers that are categorized as, e.g.,“presentation”, “business objects” and “data”. Recently, applicationshave also been written with an “interaction” layer to specifyinteractions between the user and the presentation layer. An authoringframework environment is used to provide an application author with atoolkit to develop the application layers. The authoring frameworkenvironment may be an integrated development environment (IDE) such as,for example, Microsoft Visual Studio.net or Sun Microsystem's Forte.

Components for each application layer are developed with the authoringframework environment using a component-based development model. Forexample, a presentation layer component may provide a user interface onthe client device. The business objects layer may provide functionalcomponents that process data. The data layer may provide a datamanagement component that stores the data required by the businessobjects layer. Additionally, an interaction layer component may specifya list of potential interactions between a user and a presentation layercomponent. Thus, an application may include separable components of thepresentation, interaction, business logic and data layers.

An author of the application may establish policies governing thepartitioning and delivery of the separate components of the applicationlayers. For example, the author may establish a policy that a particularcomponent always executes on an application server or always executes ona client device. However, where the author does not establish a policygoverning the delivery and execution of a particular component on onlyan application server or a client device, the component may be deliveredaccording to a dynamic partitioning determination based on a profile ofthe requesting client device.

Additionally, based upon the partitioning and delivery policies, theauthoring framework environment may also generate an appropriate set ofalternative versions for each component. The alternative versions mayvary so that a version of a partitionable component can be delivered toa client device according to a profile of the client device. In otherwords, after determining that a component of an application can bepartitioned and delivered to a client device, an appropriate version ofthe component may be selected for delivery to a requesting client devicebased upon the profile of the client device. Accordingly, thealternative component versions can be provided so that a dynamicpartitioning determination results in the delivery of the mostappropriate version of an application component.

The clients and applications are generically categorized as “thin”,“smart” or “rich”. A rich application offers several advantages over athin client application. For example, if a web-based application isdownloaded from the internet, a rich application that is delivered to aclient device may offer a secure execution environment for theapplication. The rich application may define code access securityinstallation mechanisms for a downloaded application module.Additionally, the rich application may define mechanisms to update adownloaded application through, e.g., direct communications over theinternet or a delayed synchronization support mechanism. Because of thedisparity in the abilities of client devices, a partitioning anddelivery determination is preferably made for each application dependingon the criteria specified by the application author, the applicationparameters and a profile of the requesting client device.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary computer network architecture of the presentinvention. As shown, the computer network architecture includes a clientdevice 180. The client device 180 is a user terminal that can send andreceive communications over a communications network using, e.g.,connections, receivers, transmitters and network gateways provided bycommunications service providers. Exemplary client devices include awireless phone, a wireless access protocol (WAP) cellular phone, apersonal digital assistant (PDA), a personal computer (PC), a handheldcomputer, a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a notebook computer, amini computer, a workstation, a mainframe computer, a set top box for atelevision, a web-enabled television, an interactive kiosk, a mobile webbrowser, or any other type of device that permits access to thecommunications network.

As shown, the client device 180 supports a processor 181, a memory 183and an application manager 185. The processor 181 may be anyconventional single or multi-chip microprocessor or special purposemicroprocessor. The memory 183 may be an addressable storage medium orcomputer accessible medium, such as random access memory (RAM), anelectronically erasable programmable read-only memory, erasableprogrammable read-only memory, a hard disk, a floppy disk, a laser disk,a compact disk, or any other memory that stores electronic content suchas programs and data.

The application manager 185 is used to manage the partitioning anddelivery of an application. The application manager 185 is a very thinprogram that is used to initiate an application launch. The applicationmanager 185 may be implemented as, e.g., a software logic module rangingfrom an application-specific application component downloaded from theapplication server 100 upon request, to a permanent client application.In an embodiment, the application manager 185 is a web browser.

The first time a new application is requested, the client device 180uses the application manager 185 to dynamically determine theappropriate partitioning of the application. The application manager 185determines required profile information that is used to partition theapplication components. Because the required profile information mayvary for different applications, the partitioning determination may bebased upon different profile information for each application.

The application manager 185 creates or retrieves profile information ofthe client device 180 and either determines which components can besupported by the client device 180 or forwards a profile to theapplication server 100 to determine which components can be supported bythe client device 180. Application components are partitioned from theapplication and delivered to the client device 180 based upon thedetermination of which components can be supported by the client device180.

The profile information of the client device may be, for example,information of a programming language requirement of the client device180. Additionally, the profile information may be a presentationparameter of the client device 180, such as information of a display(not shown) associated with the client device. The profile informationmay also be a processing parameter, such as a processing speed, of theclient device 180. Additionally, the profile information may be a memorycapacity of the client device 180, or a network connection requirementof the client device 180. The profile information can include anylimitation of a client device 180 that can be used to determine whetheran application component can be supported by the client device 180.

In an embodiment, the application manager 185 can create or retrieve theprofile and determine the appropriate partitioning and delivery of theapplication without forwarding the profile information to theapplication server 100. The application manager 185 receives andprocesses information of the requested application that is forwarded bythe application server 100. The client device 180 may receive parametersof the requested application and use the application manager 185 todetermine which application components can be supported by the clientdevice 180 according to the profile information as described above.

The client device 180 communicates through a communications network 190with the application server 100. The communications network 190 may be anetwork or combination of networks, including wireline networks,wireless networks, or a combination of wireline and wireless networks.The network(s) may include, e.g., the internet or another network forpacket switched transmission, a satellite or radio network, a cablenetwork, the public switched telephone network (PSTN), or an advancedintelligent network (AIN). A network may also include a virtual privatenetwork (VPN) that provides secure and encrypted communications betweennodes of the network. The noted networks are used as non-limitingexamples; as used herein, the terms “network” and “networks” refer toany network or combination of networks that interconnect multipledevices and/or provide a medium for transmitting data from one device toanother.

The application server 100 has partitioning logic 130 which includes anapplication manager relations module 131 and a partitioning logic module133. The application manager relations module 131 includes logic forprocessing requests from the applications manager 185. The partitioninglogic module 133 includes logic for partitioning and delivering anapplication. Of course, in an embodiment, the application server 100 mayforward application parameters to the client device 180 so that theapplication manager 185 can determine the partitioning of theapplication components. In the case where the application manager 185determines which components can be supported by the client device 180,the client device 180 forwards the results to the application server 100so that the partitioning logic 130 can partition and deliver theapplication for execution.

The application server 100 includes a processor 140, ROM memory 150 andRAM memory 160. The application server 100 also includes a componentlist module 110 for listing separable components of an application. Theseparable components are stored by the component module 120. In theembodiment shown in FIG. 1, different versions of an application'slayers are stored. The different versions may be different versions ofseparable components of a single layer. The components are selected fromthe component module 120 based upon the determination of whichcomponents can be supported by the client device 180. Accordingly, theselection of application components from the component module 120 isbased upon the profile information of the client device 180. If theapplication's author permits the delivery of a component and if the userhas not indicated a preference that a particular component not bedelivered to the client device 180, then the component may be deliveredto the client device 180 based upon the partitioning determination andcomponent selection. Additionally, an application author may specify apreferential order for the selection of components for delivery to theclient device 180.

As an example, if a client device 180 will only support a thinpresentation layer, the partitioning determination may result in thedelivery of only thin presentation layer components to the client device180. However, if a client device 180 will support a rich presentationlayer, the partitioning determination may result in the delivery ofadditional or more complex presentation layer components to the clientdevice 180. However, even when reasons exist for delivering a richcomponent to a client device 180, a thin component may be selected anddelivered, although the rich component is available, when theapplication author has specified the selection of the thin client.

Additionally, if a client device 180 will support an interaction layeror business objects layer, the interaction layer or business objectslayer components may be delivered to the client device 180. However, ifthe client device 180 will not support an interaction layer or businessobjects layer, the interaction layer or business objects layercomponents are retained at the application server 100 during executionof the application.

As an example of the alternative components stored in the componentmodule 120, a set of presentation layer components may include anXHTML/WML pages component version (with associated URIs) and analternative User Interface Controls component version (Forms in Windowsterminology). Additionally, the business logic controls may beimplemented as a Java Beans component version or as a secure webservices component version. The Java Beans version may be selected fordirect invocation when an application is running on an intranet.Alternatively, secure web services may be invoked using Internetprotocol (IP) over a less private network. The alternative componentsare each registered in the component list module 110 of the applicationserver 100. The alternative components are stored in the componentmodule 120. Accordingly, the application server 100 of the applicationdelivery system can select and deliver alternative versions ofapplication layers according to the profile information of the clientdevice 180.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary diagram showing a method of creating,partitioning and delivering an application according to the presentinvention. At S201 the application is partitioned into layers by anapplication author. At S202, the author creates application componentsusing the application framework. Alternative component implementationsare generated at S203. Component delivery policies are established atS204.

The dynamic partitioning determination is made according to thecomponent delivery policies established at S204. Additionally, after adetermination is made whether a component can be supported on the clientdevice 180, an appropriate version of the component may be selected fromthe alternatives generated at S203. The selection determination is usedto determine which of a set of alternative versions of a component can,and should, be delivered to the client device 180 for execution. Forexample, a particular component may require the client device 180 tosupport a particular application parameter, e.g., available memory orprocessing speed. If the client device 180 does not support theparameter required by a version of the application component, analternative version of the application component may be supported. Ifnone of a set of alternative application component versions aresupported by a client device 180, the application may still be executedwhen the application component can be retained at an application server100 during execution.

Application components are registered at, e.g., the application server100, at S205. Regardless of whether alternative application componentversions are provided, the application components are registered. Whenonly a single version of a component is registered at the applicationserver, a determination is made whether the component can be partitionedfrom the application and delivered to the requesting client device 180.Additionally, when alternative versions of a component are provided, theversions of the components registered in the component list areassociated with selection criteria. The selection criteria for acomponent are associated with the profile constraints of client devices180. The partitioning determination may include a selection of acomponent version according to the parameters of the client device 180and the selection criteria of the registered components. The selectiondetermination is used to determine which of a set of alternativeversions of a component can be delivered to the client device 180 forexecution. For example, a particular component may require the clientdevice 180 to support a particular application parameter, e.g., memoryrequirement or processing speed. If the client device 180 does notsupport the parameter required by a version of the applicationcomponent, an alternative version of the application component may besupported. If none of a set of alternative application componentversions are supported by a client device 180, the application may stillbe executed when the application component can be retained at theapplication server 100 during execution.

The application is then published at S206. At S207, a launch request forthe application is received from the client device 180 at theapplication server 100. At S208, the application is dynamicallypartitioned based on a profile of the client device 180. Applicationcomponents are delivered based on the partitioning and selection atS208. The delivered components of the application are delivered to theclient device 180 while the retained components of the application (ifany) are retained at the application server 100.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an exemplary method of delivering anapplication according to an aspect of the present invention. At S301, arequest is received from, e.g., the client device 180, by, e.g., theapplication server 100, to launch an application. At S302, adetermination is made whether the category of the requesting clientdevice is recognized.

If the category of the requesting client device is recognized(S302=Yes), a partitioning rule based on the profile of the recognizedclient device 180 is retrieved at S308. The partitioning rule variesbased on the profile of the recognized client device 180 and theparticular requested application. If the client device 180 is notrecognized (S302=No), a profile of the client device 180 is retrieved atS303. Additionally, a determination is made whether the user has adelivery preference at S304. If the user has a delivery preference(S304=Yes), a determination is made at S305 whether the preference isfeasible. If the preference is not feasible (S305=No), or if the userdoes not have a delivery preference (S304=No), a determination is madeat S306 whether components of the application can be supported by theclient device 180. A selection from alternative components that can besupported by the client device 180 may also be made at S306. If theuser's preference is feasible (S305=Yes), a determination whethercomponents of the application can be supported is made in view of theuser's preference at S307.

The components that can be supported by the client device 180 aresubject to partitioning from the application. After determining thepartitioning rule at S306 or S307, or after retrieving the partitioningrule at S308, a determination is made of which components are needed fordelivery at S309. The determination at S309 is made because one or moreapplication components may already reside on the requesting clientdevice 180. Accordingly, an application component for the requestedapplication may not be necessary if the component already exists on theclient device 180. Any application components to be delivered that donot already exist on the client device 180 are downloaded at S310. Theapplication is executed at S311.

Of course, the determination or selection of a particular component maybe dependent upon the determination of other components of anapplication. For example, where one component is only capable ofinteracting with a particular version of another component, theparticular version of the latter must be selected if the former isselected. Additionally, the selection of a particular component fordelivery may have an effect on the profile of the requesting clientdevice 180, e.g., the available memory. Accordingly, the partitioningdetermination may be performed for multiple components as a group. Forexample, all of the components of a layer may be selected at one time asa group based upon the profile of the client device 180. Accordingly,the partitioning determination at S306 or S307 may include, for example,sequentially determining individual components for delivery to a clientdevice 180 in isolation, or the partitioning determination may includedetermining a group of compatible components for delivery to a clientdevice 180 at one time.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an exemplary method of generatingapplication components for an application according to an aspect of thepresent invention. The process starts at S400. At S401, a component isdesignated, and at S405 a determination is made whether the component isfrom the business objects or data layers. If the component is not fromthe business objects or data layers (S405=No), then at S451 adetermination is made whether a display requirement exists for thecomponent. If a display requirement exists for the component (S451=Yes),the display requirement is stored at S452. If a display requirement doesnot exist for the component (S451=No), or after the display requirementis stored at S452, or when the determination at S405 indicates thecomponent is from the business objects or data layers (S405=Yes), adetermination is made at S453 whether a language requirement exists forthe component.

Because a display requirement should not affect the business objectslayer components or the data layer components, a determination of adisplay requirement is not made at S451 for business objects layer anddata layer components. As a result, the process of determining userdevice requirements and generating a component implementation andalternatives for a business objects layer component or a data layercomponent is performed from S453 to S465.

If a language requirement exists for the component at S453 (S453=Yes),the language requirement is stored at S454. If a language requirementdoes not exist for the component (S453=No), or after the languagerequirement is stored at S454, a determination is made at S455 whether aprocessing requirement exists for the component. If a processingrequirement for the component exists at S455, the processing requirementis stored at S456. If a processing requirement for the component doesnot exist at S455 (S455=No), or after storing the processing requirementat S456, a determination is made at S457 whether a memory requirementexists for the component.

If a memory requirement exists at S457 (S457=Yes), the memoryrequirement is stored at S458. If a memory requirement does not exist atS457 (S457=No), or after the memory requirement is stored at S458, adetermination is made at S459 whether a network connection requirementexists for the component. If a network connection requirement exists forthe component at S459 (S459=Yes), the network connection requirement isstored for the component at S460.

If a network connection requirement does not exist for the component atS459 (S459=No), or after the network connection requirement is storedfor the component at S460, the authoring framework is used at S463 togenerate the component according to the requirements stored at S452,S454, S456, S458 and/or S460. The authoring framework is then used atS465 to generate alternative component implementations according to thestored requirements. In other words, once the relevant user devicerequirements are determined, the component is generated at S463 andalternative components are generated for the application at S465.

At S470, a determination is made whether all components have beengenerated. If additional components need to be generated (S470=No), thenext component is designated at S475. After designating the nextcomponent at S475, a determination is made whether the next component iseither a business objects layer or a data layer component at S405. Ifthe next component is a business objects layer component or a data layercomponent at S405 (S405=Yes), the determination is made at S453 whethera language requirement exists for the component.

If the next component is not a business objects layer or data layercomponent (S405=No), a determination is made whether a displayrequirement exists for the component at S451. Accordingly, each time theprocess of generating a component is performed for a presentation layercomponent or an interaction layer component, the process of determiningand storing requirements is repeated at steps S451 to S460.Additionally, each time the process of generating a component isperformed for a business objects layer component or data layercomponent, the process of determining and storing requirements isrepeated at steps S453 to S460. Once all components have been generatedfor the requested application (S470=Yes), the process ends.

Accordingly, any of a display requirement partitioning rule, a languagerequirement partitioning rule, a processing requirement partitioningrule, a memory requirement partitioning rule and a network connectionpartitioning rule may be created for a presentation layer or interactionlayer component of the application. Additionally, any of a languagerequirement partitioning rule, a processing requirement partitioningrule, a memory requirement partitioning rule and a network connectionpartitioning rule may be created for a business objects or data layercomponent of the application. Of course, the noted rules are merelyexemplary; any potential parameters or limitations of a client devicemay be the basis of additional rules for the business objects layer, thedata layer or any other layer or components of an application.

The process shown in the example of FIG. 4 can be used to generate oneor more components for an application. An author may generate componentsby layer, e.g., presentation layer components first, although generatingcomponents by layer is not required. Rather, FIG. 4 illustrates that anapplication component can be tailored to fit the requirements of userdevices foreseen by the application author. Moreover, alternatives canbe generated within the parameters specified by an application author.

Of course, the order of the steps shown in the example of FIG. 4 can berearranged. For example, the process shown in the embodiment of FIG. 4may be supplemented with additional steps. Alternatively, steps shown inthe example of FIG. 4 may be modified or eliminated. For example,requirements may be determined for a different set of parameters of aclient device 180 than are shown in S451, S453, S455, S457 and S459.

Accordingly, the application author is enabled to set client device 180profile requirements for each component of an application. The profilerequirements are used in partitioning the application when a request isreceived by, e.g., an application server to deliver the application. Theapplication server delivers layers and/or components to the clientdevice 180 according to the profile parameters of the client device 180.As a result, a client device 180 is provided with the most appropriateversion, or the most appropriate layers and components, of theapplication according to the partitioning rules provided by theapplication author and executed at runtime.

Thus, an application is partitioned and components of the applicationare delivered to a client device 180 according to a profile of theclient device 180 requesting the application. The client device 180receives components of the application according to the ability of theclient device 180 to support the components. Accordingly, a user of aclient device is enabled to use a requested application according to theability of the client device to support the application. As isexplained, the ability to dynamically partition an application anddeliver the partitioned application enables a user to experience aspectsof the application that would not be provided if the application authoris forced to provide the application in a predetermined unpartitionedform. According to the invention described above with respect to FIGS.1-4, the application author enables the client device user to enjoy themost efficient and secure execution of the application by dynamicallypartitioning and delivering the application at runtime.

Although the invention has been described with reference to severalexemplary embodiments, it is understood that the words that have beenused are words of description and illustration, rather than words oflimitation. Changes may be made within the purview of the appendedclaims, as presently stated and as amended, without departing from thescope and spirit of the invention in its aspects. Although the inventionhas been described with reference to particular means, materials andembodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to theparticulars disclosed; rather, the invention extends to all functionallyequivalent structures, methods, and uses such as are within the scope ofthe appended claims. For example, additional client device requirementsmay be considered when generating components as in the embodiment ofFIG. 4, and when partitioning an application for delivery to a clientdevice as in the embodiment of FIG. 3.

Additionally, an application author may designate a priority order forthe selection of components for partitioning and delivery. Accordingly,a final partitioning and delivery determination may be made after aneligibility determination is made for each application componentaccording to the parameters of the client device. As a result, theapplication components can be partitioned and delivered in a presetorder where, for example, the client device has limited memory orprocessing ability. Of course, the preset preference order for theselection of components will be subject to a determination whether theclient device will support a preferred version of a component.

In accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, themethods described herein are intended for operation as software programsrunning on a computer processor. Dedicated hardware implementationsincluding, but not limited to, application specific integrated circuits,programmable logic arrays and other hardware devices can likewise beconstructed to implement the methods described. Furthermore, alternativesoftware implementations including, but not limited to, distributedprocessing or component/object distributed processing, parallelprocessing, or virtual machine processing can also be constructed toimplement the methods described.

It should also be noted that the software implementations of the presentinvention as described are optionally stored on a tangible storagemedium, such as: a magnetic medium such as a disk or tape; amagneto-optical or optical medium such as a disk; or a solid statemedium such as a memory card or other package that houses one or moreread-only (non-volatile) memories, random access memories, or otherre-writable (volatile) memories. A digital file attachment to email orother self-contained information archive or set of archives isconsidered a distribution medium equivalent to a tangible storagemedium. Accordingly, the invention is considered to include a tangiblestorage medium or distribution medium, as listed herein and includingart-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which the softwareimplementations herein are stored.

Although the present specification describes components and functionsimplemented in the embodiments with reference to particular standardsand protocols, the invention is not limited to such standards andprotocols. Each of the standards, protocols and languages for objectoriented programming (e.g., Java, Visual Basic, C++), integrateddevelopment environments, and program components (e.g., XHTML, WML),represent examples of the state of the art. Such standards areperiodically superseded by faster or more efficient equivalents havingessentially the same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards andprotocols having the same functions are considered equivalents.

1. A method for delivering a software application to a client device,comprising: storing a plurality of alternate component versions for afirst software component of a software application; storing a pluralityof alternate component versions for a second software component of thesoftware application; selecting one of the plurality of alternatecomponent versions for the first software component; selecting one ofthe plurality of alternate component versions for the second softwarecomponent; delivering the selected alternate component version for thefirst software component to a client device, wherein the selectedalternate component version for the first software component is executedby the client device and the selected alternate component version forthe second software component is executed by an application server. 2.The method according to claim 1, further comprising: determining aprofile of the client device, wherein the selected alternate componentversion for the first software component and the selected alternatecomponent version for the second software component are selected basedon the determined profile.
 3. The method according to claim 2, whereinthe selected alternate component version for the first softwarecomponent and the selected alternate component version for the secondsoftware component are dynamically partitioned into a first group and asecond group based on the determined profile.
 4. The method according toclaim 3, further comprising: delivering the first group to the clientdevice from the application server; and retaining the second group atthe application server.
 5. The method according to claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving, at the application server, a request from theclient device to launch the software application.
 6. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the selected alternate component versionfor the first software component comprises a presentation layer softwarecomponent.
 7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the selectedalternate component version for the first software component comprises:at least one of an interaction layer software component, a businessobjects layer software component and a data layer software component. 8.The method according to claim 1, further comprising: determining aprofile of the client device by determining at least one of a physicaldisplay characteristic of the client device, a processing potential ofthe client device, a processor configuration of the client device,available client device memory, and client device network connectionspeed.
 9. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:determining a user selection of a delivery preference and partitioningthe selected alternate component version for the first softwarecomponent and the selected alternate component version for the secondsoftware component into a first group and a second group according tothe determined user selection.
 10. The method according to claim 1,further comprising: forwarding an application manager to the clientdevice to determine a profile of the client device.
 11. The methodaccording to claim 2, further comprising: requesting the client deviceto forward the profile.
 12. A system for delivering a softwareapplication to a requesting client device, comprising: a storage thatstores a plurality of alternate component versions for a first softwarecomponent of a software application and that stores a plurality ofalternate component versions for a second software component of thesoftware application; and an application server that selects one of theplurality of alternate component versions for the first softwarecomponent; that selects one of the plurality of alternate componentversions for the second software component; and that delivers theselected alternate component version for the first software component toa client device, wherein the selected alternate component version forthe first software component is executed by the client device and theselected alternate component version for the second software componentis executed by an application server.
 13. The system according to claim12, wherein the application server further determines a profile of theclient device, and wherein the selected alternate component version forthe first software component and the selected alternate componentversion for the second software component are selected based on thedetermined profile.
 14. The system according to claim 13, wherein theselected alternate component version for the first software componentand the selected alternate component version for the second softwarecomponent are dynamically partitioned into a first group and a secondgroup based on the determined profile.
 15. The system according to claim14, wherein the first group is delivered to the client device from theapplication server; wherein the second group is retained at theapplication server; wherein the first group is executed by the clientdevice, and wherein the application is executed using the first groupand second group.
 16. The system according to claim 14, wherein thefirst group comprises a presentation layer software component.
 17. Thesystem according to claim 14, wherein the first group comprises at leastone of an interaction layer software component, a business objects layersoftware component and a data layer software component.
 18. The systemaccording to claim 12, wherein the application server determines atleast one of a physical display characteristic of the client device, aprocessing potential of the client device, processor configuration ofthe client device, available client device memory, and client devicenetwork connection speed.
 19. The system according to claim 14, whereinthe application server determines a user selection of a deliverypreference and partitions the selected alternate component version forthe first software component and the selected alternate componentversion for the second software component according to the determineduser selection.
 20. The system according to claim 12, wherein theapplication server forwards an application manager to the client deviceto determine a profile of the client device.